Full Transcript:

I am so excited to have you here where we talk about the vibrancy, complexity of Latino culture, entrepreneurship, and all the bochinche in between. In this episode, I have the honor and pleasure. I know I say this with every guest and it is because my guests are pretty spectacular and they're pretty amazing. They're freaking killing it. In this episode, I had the pleasure of having an assemblywoman on the show.

Get into it you all because this is the first politician that I've met in a long time that felt true, authentic, and dope as hell that I was proud to say, “This is a fellow Latina who is killing it who believes in what she says and is on a mission.” She has a vision to reconstruct how her community is developed, how her community is perceived, and one for the people. I am super excited to welcome you to the show. Assemblywoman Amanda Septimo, thank you so much for being here.

 

Thank you. I'm going to try hard to live up to everything you said.

 

Who Is Assemblywoman Amanda Septimo

Is it weird being formally recognized as an assemblywoman?

 

It is still weird. There are many times when people introduce me and I'm like, “Wait. That's me.” When people call me by my title, I always tell people like, “Amanda is fine,” but people want to be respectful. It's still a little strange when someone says assembly member. I'm like, “Yeah. That's me.”

 

You and I met at a golf outing. Tell the people what you put on because that's dope.

 

We did the Dominican Classic, which I'm proud of which is like any other golf outing in that you go out, you have your foursomes, and you play your holes, etc., but we wanted to make sure that the Dominican culture was front and center. My mother's parents are from the Dominican Republic and that meant a Dominican twist on a golf. With the regular breakfast, you also have mangu, queso frito, and salami.

 

When you are out playing around, you can have your beers, but you're also going to have some Barceló. You're going to have some great rum and Coke. For lunch, you're going to have your regular lunch but for dessert, we're going to have Dominican cake and those kinds of little things. You have Dominican flags sprinkled throughout. It’s a way to merge two things that I love and make sure that culture is at the front and center of it.

 

My boy Patrick invited me to come to your first one. I was like, “A Latina is making this meringue classique in the Bronx? What? I was like, “I'm coming. Let's go.” I had the pleasure of meeting you there and immediately I picked up on this energy. I should've known because anyone Patrick introduces me to is usually someone badass.

 

I was like, “This is a vibe. You had the dudes rolling the cigars.” You had incredible people there who are all influential in their own right and who are all killing it. They came out to support you. I was also really amazed by that. I was like, “She's got some cool people in her back pocket that support her and believe in her.”

 

I appreciate that. It is a working theory still, but my theory is that good people doing good work always find each other. That's how I feel about the network of people that I'm blessed to call home.

 

It was also refreshing to see a politician who had some swag because he was like a real cue in your little outfit.

 

I do work on my golf outfit. Thank you.

 

Again, this aura, this magnetic energy and I was like, “I like her.” Where I got the pleasure to hang out with you more on a personal level and for us to have real talks. Also, outside of you having to wear the mask and do your thing and be on.

 

We got to chill in Puerto Rico. I got to see a whole other side of you even though I was introduced to the human side of Amanda at your golf outing. I was but you were also in your element.

 

It's your event. It's meringue classique. These are your people. I was able to see that side, but even more so when we were in Puerto Rico. I grew so much more respect for you after speaking with you there and having the opportunity to hang with you. Also, seeing that you are very intentional about the work that you do.

 

You are very passionate about the work that you do, but you're also very intentional in having fun and enjoying yourself. Also, not forgetting who you are and why you are which we'll talk a little bit more about in this conversation. I want to say I love you.

 

I love you back. I'm so happy to be here. Thank you for inviting me.

What’s The Bonchinche?

We like to start the show with a segment called “What’s the Bochinche?” Tell us something spicy and good.

 

I will say I got this inspiration from someone else but I am single and ready to mingle. I think when you're in politics, it's hard because I signed up for a life that's public but believe it or not, I'm a private person. That's 100% true for my private life and my dating life. When you're trying to be a young person, do all this work, and strike the balance, it can be hard. This is my third year in office and I think I've finally gotten to a place where I'm like, “I think I can figure out what it means to sustain a healthy relationship, be good at my job, still be connected to my friends and family and work it all out. I'm ready.

 

You heard here first. I am respectful of people's preferences. Any fellow who is reading this who is interested in being with a powerhouse who's amazing, but also has a sense of humor.

 

Also, a little complicated.

 

Aren't we all darling? That's how it is. My bochinche is, and I want to bring light to this. My cousin is amazing. She made this gorgeous glass tumbler. It’s handmade. It has our logo Banking on Cultura. She's a new business owner and I'm so proud of her. First of all, this is super cute. When she told me she could do this, I said, “What? I'm going to have this on every episode because this is a vibe. It's super cute. Also, I want to support not only my family who's in business but is another Latina.

 

Amanda’s Start In Politics

It worked out perfectly. Kathy, if you're watching, I'm super proud of you. Keep going. Amanda, I want to hear about what got you involved in politics. Maybe this is a part of your story, maybe it isn't, but there's a stigma around politicians. Are they about this life? Are they kind of behind the scenes doing things they're not supposed to do? Did any of that influence you? What brought you to this decision of like, “I'm putting myself out there. I'm going to be in the public spotlight. I'm going to represent my people.”

 

It was a few things. I think in the last few years, we've seen a lot of young women decide to run for office and they have these incredible watershed moments where it's like, “My representative voted against abortion.” I was like, “Enough. That's great. I don't have any story like that. My story is connected to the fact that I grew up in the South Bronx my whole life. I grew up in Hunts Point, which is the rougher side of the mountain.

 

I remember that documentary.

 

We got to move on that. It's not as bad as people think it is. I think it's a wonderful place that I love but it is a community that has been starved of meaningful investment in terms of resources and I lived through that. That's the community that I grew up in. At the same time, I went to school every day in this community that had everything you could imagine up in Rye in Westchester. Watching the dynamic every day, it was like, “Not everybody lives like this. Certainly, we don't have to live like this. What’s the disconnect?”

 

Through community activism with some organizations in the district and volunteering for the congressman is when I got to experience the work firsthand and understand the intersection between policy and politics. Also, how important it is. I don't have this big watershed moment, but I describe it for people as a slow drip. It's like a drip over time. I spent four years working for Congressman Serrano and it became clear to me that it doesn't matter if you have one great level of government representing you, the other ones have to be good too.

 

It was during that time that I think it became super clear to me that I would run for office. I wasn't exactly sure when, but I also knew I wasn't going to wait that long. That's when it became clear because I do think politics also trick you into thinking that you have to wait. It's not your turn yet. You're too young. There are all these other things and I knew I wasn't going to play by those roles.

 

What does it take to run for office?

 

It takes a lot of thick skin. At the end of the day, it takes a network of people who believe in you and who support you. It takes a vision of the leadership that you want to put into action. I think if you have those two things, all the other things that you need, you can build. You need money to run a campaign, but the way you get money in a campaign is people believing that your campaign can win. Also, you can't win that campaign without people who believe in you, who are willing to knock on doors with you, and who are willing to do all the grunt work that goes into a campaign.

When people see that you have that and you can build an operation that is meaningful and that can therefore win, that money will arrive. The other support and the endorsements will come. Those are all things that I think make it easier to win but I think the things that you can't win without are genuine support from people. I say a vision of leadership because I think part of getting people to support you is being able to articulate what are the problems and more than what are the problems, what are the solutions that you're proposing. It’s because I think any one of us can go outside in New York right now, and I can point to you 100 things that are wrong, but coming up with how to fix them gets more difficult.

 

How To Get People To Support You

What is the how behind all of that? How do you get people to support you? How do you identify your vision? How do you know what solutions are good for what problems? How did you build up the how?

 

I tell people that I think when you live in a community, you're already an expert. I tell people this all the time. You are an expert. People make you think that you have to work in politics. You have to go to school. You have to do all this crap to be an expert and be able to run for office but the truth is, if you live in a community and you experience that problem every day, you're an expert because you are living it every single day.

 

There's innovation in every single corner of our community because we come from a community and a culture where people know how to do more with less. Innovation is built into our every day. How do you get to those solutions? I think the answers are within you. It's like, “What are some of the things that you wish?” It’s like, “I wish that bus stop was further down the block. I wish that whatever,”  but I think in terms of how you get to the support, it's getting clear on the answer for yourself, and then it's going out and talking to people. I ran in 2018 and I lost that race. I didn't win until 2020, but in 2018 I knocked on almost 4,000 doors myself. That's not counting on any of the doors.

 

That type of grassroots campaign still works.

 

Do you know why? It’s because people don't do it that much. It's unusual that somebody that you don't expect or don't know comes and knocks on your door.

 

They open the door because, in this day and age, I don't know.

 

That's a good point, especially in New York. People are nervous sometimes. What you do is if I'm going to go knock on the projects, I'm not going to knock at night if I can avoid it because I know people are going to be nervous. They are going to be like, “Who is that at my door right after dark?” I'll work hard to make sure that I get there as much as I can in the daytime. You sometimes can do things where you give people a heads up where you'll send out a call and say, “I'm going to be knocking in these few days,” so that if there's a knock on the door, they might be like, “Maybe it's her.” If they hear you say, “I'm the assembly member,” or, “I'm running for whatever, they'll perk up,” but the truth is you'll be surprised.

 

There’s an appetite out there. People want to talk about what's going on in their community and how to fix it because they're living the same issues too. They don't have the capacity or the ability to pick up and make their whole life about that issue, but that doesn't mean it's not important to them. People are starving for that kind of engagement and that's what you see on doors where people open the door.

 

I still struggle with this to this day. You're only supposed to spend a few minutes on a door because you have to get to thousands but people will keep you there talking for 10, 15, or 20 minutes because they have so much to say, and that I think is special. It’s an incredibly unique bonding experience with the community. I told you I lost in 2018, and I cannot tell you how many people would come up to me and stop me in the street. They are like, “You're going to get it next time,” and I’m crying but it's special to be supported in that way. I think that's some of the how. You got to get out there and do it.

 

You get to meet people where they are.

 

Also, be honest about your vision and your intentions. If you can't get clear on your vision and your path, then it's probably not time yet. I think that's the measure of like, “Are you ready? Are you clear on the work you want to do when you get there?” I think that's the answer.

 

You said every campaign requires money. Was it difficult for you to raise money or ask about money?

 

Yes, definitely. There are all kinds of studies that say it's harder for women to raise money in politics. Anything you look at, it’s harder for women. Politics is no different. It's harder for women to raise money, but I also think that as a woman of color or as a Latina, the concept of asking people for money is completely foreign to me. I would never ever think about doing something like that. However, you start with your friends and family. Again, these are people who believe in you the most, who've been seeing you in the trenches, watching you think about it, and watching you do the hard work.

 

Every single time that someone says, yes, it boosts your confidence a little more. I think you understand that any time someone decides not to give you money, there's going to be ten other people who will and you keep moving and going. That builds your confidence. Every step forward is another confirmation that you're on the right path and it makes it easier. I struggled with getting over my own personal kind of limitations, but once I did that, I was able to get through.

Is Politics Cutthroat? 

Is it true what they say about politicians and politics it being super cutthroat, it being like a lot of scumbags, and people taking advantage of their position?

 

I want to say, I wish I could say no, but the truth is that there are people in politics who are out for themselves. Who are out for power and for influence to only help themselves but here is the thing. Politics is not special in that regard. If you look at any industry, there's people like that. There are people who are not doing their job for the right reasons and politics is no different. I think people focus on it more because, in theory, everybody's job is supposed to be to help others and not themselves.

 

However, you see the same thing that you see in other industries. Now, with all of that said, I do think there are great people in politics too and what we need in politics is more good people deciding to get in because I do think that when you are genuinely committed to the work, it can be discouraging to watch it all unfold. It's like, “This is not what I thought it was going to be. I thought we were here to help people. I thought we were going to do this and that.”

It can be discouraging, but you need more good people in because I think I'm a good person. Also, being in there and finding other great people is life-affirming. It's like a breath of fresh air. It's like, “Together, we can make more change.” Also, you commit to adding more people like you into the fold. I'm like, “How do we get some of these people that we know maybe aren't here for our people? How do we sideline them? How do we spotlight and center people who believe in the ideals that we believe in and see the world the same way we do and want to help our people in the way that we do?

Bringing new people in. What's attractive to becoming a politician?

 

That's a hard question.

 

What is enticing?

 

Some days, I don’t know the answer. I would say that I think for me, and this sounds so cliché. I've talked about this before. For me, it is so special when somebody comes up to you and it's like, “Your office helped me with whatever.” On a more global scale, we all lived through the pandemic. We know that people couldn't pay their rent because people weren't working. What's going to happen at the end of the eviction moratorium?

 

First of all, the fact that we had an eviction moratorium was a victory. Otherwise, people could have been evicted during the pandemic and we know how that would've played out for communities like mine in the South Bronx where people don't have money that they can pull from to pay their rent. That in itself is like, “Being able to help that many people at scale is incredible.” After the pandemic, the program where we help people pay their back rent is helping tons of people hold onto some stability in their life.

 

Being in the room when those conversations are happening and watching the considerations that go into these decisions knowing that your voice adds to the chorus that is going to help millions of people that look like you is special. It's powerful but equally powerful is when I'm at the store, at the nail place, run into whoever, and they are like, “Your office helped my son get into whatever program. Thank you so much.”

 

I met someone. “My son was in this basketball program that your office put together. Thank you so much.” Those are the moments that are gratifying because I think in politics it can feel hard sometimes. When everything is wrong, it can feel hard to feel like you're making a change so to be able to see it and point to something and point to someone and say, “I did that thing is fulfilling.” I'd say helping people. As cliché as that is, helping people is probably the most attractive part. I will say the list of things that is not great is much longer but helping people feels nice.

 

One of the things you shared with me in Puerto Rico, which I thought was interesting, and could be enticing is making six figures but what was also interesting was it doesn't need to be your only job. I thought when you're a politician, that's your full-time gig and that's it but you put me on. Talk more about that. How are people doing that?

 

That's unique to us in the state assembly and the state senate on the state level. Different levels have different rules. On the state level, we're technically a part-time legislature, which means that from January through June, we have to go to Albany about 3 or 4 nights a week. Sometimes it's five nights a week when things are intense but then July through December, we're not in Albany at all. Our whole job is down in our district, wherever it is. My district's in the Bronx. Some people are up by Niagara Falls. It depends.

 

Also, because it's technically a part-time legislature, you're allowed to work whatever other job. We have colleagues who are attorneys by trade who still have caseloads. We have colleagues who own their own businesses and any number of things. Now, the rules are changing a little bit. We are going to have a limit on outside income that's going to be starting soon, which means that you can only make up to this much more money even if you have another business. It's an interesting thing.

 

Where is that coming down from? Is it at the Federal level?

 

It’s a law. We agreed to pass it here on the state level. When we got the pay raise, the trade-off was, “If you're going to get paid more money, then you need to be, in theory, spending more time on this job so you can only get up to this much money doing something else. There are some exemptions, but I think it's people's effort to make sure that you got legislators focused more on their work and that there's a limited ability to influence legislators outside.

 

The idea that if I have a business and you buy from my business and you need something done on the official side, am I thinking about the fact that we have a business relationship? You're not supposed to The law says, “No. Those things are separate.” If you're doing it right, you treat them separately, but it's not always how it happens.

 

Tell me about how you're able to play the game of politics as a politician because from what I understand and what I've been introduced to, by the way, I was enrolled in this program when I was in college where they would take us to Albany and we would act like we were legislators. We would get the whole tour. That was interesting. Also, one of my mentors and pretty much my second mom, Shirley Rodríguez Remeneski worked for the Empire State Development Corporation under Governor Pataki, the first time. I had a lot of introductions to politics. Most of the time, I did want to be a politician.

 

Also a good one.

 

Thank you.

 

Attributes Of A Good Politician 

 

Let's talk about that. What are the good attributes of a good politician?

I think it's probably a subjective list, but I would say a people person. It's a job that requires so much giving in terms of people. I was explaining to someone that it does something to you where 95% of the conversations in my life involve someone asking you for something. Even if it's a good thing, even if it's a nice thing, or even if it's to help the community, it does something to my life. In 95% of conversations I engage in, it's a need.

 

I think you have to be willing to deal with people and have that be okay. If you're someone who's hardwired to not deal with people, it's not going to work. You're going to be deeply unhappy. I think unhappy legislators are not good ones. I think being a people person, but I think also the ability to have conviction, have ideals, be able to stick to them, be able to defend them, have vision, and be a good person. As crazy as that sounds, be a good person because it's not that obvious in politics.

You said good with people but I think a level deeper than that is you have to be an expert at relationships because I feel like in order to get anything done, you need to have relationships. How have you been able to manage through where you had to maybe agree to do something that you didn't want to completely do, but you had had to do it because you needed them to do something for you?

That happened to me. There's a bill I voted against before and someone asked me to vote for it now. I was like, “Fine,” because I knew I was going to have to ask her for a bunch of stuff later. You manage relationships. I think your point about being a relationship expert, it's an interesting one because I have a few colleagues who are not, but who have other ways of building capital.

 

They're prolific fundraisers so they can use the money that they raise to help them buy access and help them buy influence. There are people who are great at relationships and their capital is social capital, and that's how they are able to move the ball forward. I think for me, I have tried to strike the balance between being reasonable and having good relationships. Also, being respectful.  That's at the core of everything that I do.

 

I got into a blowout with a colleague because she cursed at me when we were having a disagreement and I was like, “I could let the hunts point in me come out, but what I'm going to do is tell you that it's not how I disagree and that's not how I talk to people. I'm going to hang up this phone and you're going to call me back when you cool down. I think having that foundation of respect is critical because it creates a space for me where people know I'm not going to BS them.

 

I'm going to tell you if I don't agree with you, and I'm going to tell you why. I'll tell you if that changes. I'm always open to having my mind changed, but I'm also comfortable telling you, “I don't see it that way and I'm not going to be able to do it.” That's helped me be able to move my ball forward on issues because people can count on me as an honest broker and I think that's something that I value.

 

That is an interesting way to position that.
 

It’s because people lie in politics. It's a thing that everybody does.

 

We're going to come back to that but I want to ask you about when you're playing the politics and you're doing your thing, how do you handle people who come to you and think you are too young and think you're too naive to the space? They think that you don't have the intellect. How are you navigating that?

 

I think that you find yourself insulated from it a little more once you're elected because the title does a lot of work for you. It’s because, for all the things that politics is, no one would say that it's easy. You have to do some finagling somewhere and that requires some level of skill or relationship, “or whatever that makes it so that people ease up a little. However, I've been in situations where it's like courtesy inclusion. It's not meaningful for all the reasons that you mentioned.

 

I'm being written off in all those ways and the truth is I worked for the congressman when I was young and I got promoted to district director young. I've been dealing with this for a long time and it's not my problem is how I think about it. If someone else is writing me off, an inability to see everything that I'm capable of is their shortcoming and not mine. Also, it's going to be the shortcoming that bites them in the ass and not me because by the time you figured it out, I will have lapped you 79 times and that's on you.

 

It's true. It’s like, “You can figure it out whenever you want. I'm going to keep doing my work. By the time you catch up, more power to you.” I also think that it's also a defense mechanism. I think it's true, but it's also a defense mechanism because if I spent time internalizing every single way that somebody in this world was going to write me off, I would never get anything done. I'm a young woman. I'm of color. I'm from the Bronx. My first language is Spanish. There are so many things that make it so that if I spend any time thinking about all the ways this person's judging me, I'm never going to do my work. I think it also protects me. It's like an insulation.

 

How did you get there?

 

Probably just practice. There are things that people assume about you that you know are not true. Sometimes the imposter syndrome will get you and it's like, “I Am X, Y, and Z but there are some things that I know that I'm not.” Maybe if you accuse me of being naive, I might think, “Damn. Am I? Am I dreaming too big?” I heard a colleague say this about me behind my back I think I can change the world and that's my problem.

 

That was the thing where I was like, “Maybe I'm thinking too big.” However, if somebody tried to call me dumb, I'd be like, “You're off base.” I won't even entertain it because I'm a lot of things, but dumb isn't one of them. I think you get to a place where you have enough practice where you know that some of the things that people say aren't true, and then you're comfortable where it's like, “If I know half the things you say aren't true, then I can also get to a place where those other things are not true as well.”

 

To internalize somebody's criticism, you have to believe in their stature. I have to believe that the things you think are true. I have to believe that you're a credible source. If you're an older White man who's writing me off for being a young woman of color, I don't believe in your credibility on this subject of young women of color. I'm fine with writing off what you think.

 

Who do you lean on? Who are the people that allow you to be in this public light, high pressure, and super intense? Who are your people? How do you refuel?

My friends and family for sure because my journey in politics has been a long one and a painful one that's included losses and all kinds of things. They're critical to that because they've been there every step of the way. They can understand as much as anyone else what I'm going through but also, I have a few very close friends who are women of color who are also in politics. That is a community that is so valuable to me because there are some things I can't put into words.

 

There are some feelings that you can't name and how extreme they feel. When there's a bad article about you, that feeling of what it means and it's special to have people who understand who have been through it who know what it's like on a daily and who can remind you that you're going to get through it and that you're a good person that you deserve to be in this work. Also, those people are hating. You need that and you need that.

 

You also need those people to remind you that we're all human and we all let our hair down. We all have fun and that's allowed. You're allowed to be a person also and that means nurturing those friendships. It also means going out and having a good time. It also means figuring out how to support each other professionally. It's my friends and family and among those friends and family, friends who work in the space or have worked in the space and know what it's like.

 

It’s super important to always have your base. The people who keep you humble because you said you got that title and when you drop that title, it comes with a level of respect. By the way, I don’t know if you are willing to admit this. Do you ever use that title to get into a dope restaurant or a reservation somewhere?

 

I am the opposite of that. I'm so nervous about a bad story of how someone being like, “This member” because you see that sometimes. That's called abuse of power and I'm nervous about that. I'm always the last person. In fact, most of the time when people ask me what I do, I say, “I work in politics,” and I'll leave it there. If they ask more, then we'll get into it but for the most part, I'm not leading with that.

 

No, I will call a friend to get into a dope restaurant if I need to but we'll figure that out. We're in New York but I know that once the title is there, there is a set of assumptions and there's also a set of formalities that come. People get like, “Oh, Uh, Uhmm,” and it's like, “No. We can chill. We can relax. I'm a normal person.” I to be as normal as possible and help people feel disarmed. I think that sometimes the title cuts that in half. I like to be normal. When people realize that I'm an assembly member, it's a surprise for them and they're like, “Oh.”

 

It’s because as you said in the beginning, it flies in the face of what people assume politicians are, what they're supposed to be, what they're supposed to look like, what they're supposed to sound like, and what their priorities are but I'm happy to be wrapping juvenile one minute and then be like, “I work in the state legislature. What's up,” and have it all be true.

 

That is one of the things I appreciate about you because and never lose that because I know in the spotlight, it’s so high pressure. Also, I think when you move in those circles for so long, you're influenced in some ways somehow. You're influence sometimes made me feel like, “They got there so maybe I need to do it that way in order for me to get there.” You sometimes like to lose yourself in the mix.

 

Holding On To Authenticity

 

However, what I love is that you are so layered. In Puerto Rico, not only that I got to see you in a different light. We went out for drinks. We have fun, but then you're at the craps table. Is that what you call that game? You are at the craps table running the whole damn table with a whole bunch of dudes. I was like, “This chick is so badass.” I knew what the hell you were doing talking your shit. I love this. I was like, “That's my Latina. It’s my sister right there. Don't play with her.” Let's talk about authenticity and how you are able to hold onto that because as I said, it's easy to lose yourself. Especially when you're in the spotlight, it's really easy to blend versus stand out. How do you have fun?

 

I think it's a symptom of life a little bit. I live in New York. I'm single. Just by default, I'm wired to have a fun life and I have girlfriends who are fun. I think in terms of staying authentic, for me, if you'd asked me 10 years ago, I might've thought that I would be in politics forever. Now that I'm in it as an elected, I'm not sure that this is forever. I think that is liberating. You see a lot of elected officials who have self-preservation as their number one priority. That's going to influence every single thing that you do, every relationship that you have, and every friendship that you have.

 

Your agenda is re-election.

 

Exactly, and how can this impact my chances to stay in the game? When you are like, “This game might be for a while,” it's liberating because what I know I'm here to do is be impactful while I'm here. I don't know how long that's going to be. I don't know what that impact is going to look like, but I know that that's my charge right now. That makes me comfortable and I'm open to life taking me further in this career in politics, but I'm also open to it taking me somewhere else.

 

That is a genuine belief for me. Being connected to that North Star and understanding that my North Star is not politics, but it's changed and it's helping people makes me feel that I can always do the thing that's a little bit harder for other people to do. I don't know where the end of my road is, but I'm comfortable that there might be one. That's not something that I think you see a lot.

 

Do you feel like you are not necessarily missing out, but maybe some of your youth is being stripped from you because you have this super important role that so many people depend on you for?

 

One hundred percent no. I work hard to keep a work-life balance. I have a best friend who's like my sister and we were talking about how in my early twenties, which is when I was working for the congressman, she was like, “There was a period where all you were doing, you were always on your way to work or coming from a work event and sneaking partying in between.” That's how I was always having fun, working and having fun. Those were the things I was doing.

 

I found more moderation now with respect to both of them but I make it a point to not choose because I know that I won't get this time back with my friends and family. I think losing people around you also brings that into focus as well. I don't feel like I lost it. A lot of the fun that I have doesn't make it onto social media. I do say to people sometimes that I think people might think that I'm more boring than I am. It's like, “I can't show you everything I do but I would love to.” I don't think I miss out and I'm lucky for that.

 

I feel like politicians do find a way to have fun, whether it is under the radar.

 

Also, finding themselves in places they shouldn't be. You won't see it on IG but we're doing it.

 

You all get busy. You all get down. You stay out late. I've seen the behind-the-scenes.

 

You have to make the hours count.

 

Dating As A Public Figure

 

It's a vibe. I want to get back to this dating life piece. How is dating as a public figure?

 

It is complicated. It’s complicated in all the ways that it's complicated for all women who are excelling in their careers in there are men who are threatened by that. When you're successful and you're doing work that puts you in the public eye and not just doing work that's impactful. In reports somewhere, you're on TV, you're getting invited to important things, and you're getting honored at events. That is a layer that is complicated for any woman who's successful. Having to find men who are stable and secure in their own identity, whatever that is, as it relates to their profession.

 

I think that's one layer, but you are a whole different layer. There's going to be photos. This is Amanda's boo. What does he do? What does he have going on?

 

There's that normal stuff, but then the added stuff is people's interest. People are interested in your private life in a way that's surprising to me. Why you care about who I'm texting is weird, but if that's what you care about, great. No problem. However, with that, I think there's also the consideration of someone's past.

 

I think about that a lot when I'm with people just like, “If I marry this person, what are the scandals that I should prepare for? What are the stories in the paper that I should be ready to answer for? What are the limitations of this? Are there things that have happened that run counter to the values that I've put forth in the past? Am I going to be called hypocritical?” I believe in second chances, but to what end? There are all those kinds of calculations but my hope is that when you meet the right person, those things fade away and you make them work. I would be lying if I didn't say they were in the back of my head.

 

Do you go as far as getting people to sign an NDA or something like that because I feel like I would? As Beyoncé said, “I'm going to need you to sign this NDA because there is no way this little fling here is going to take me down.”

 

I haven't gotten there yet because I don't know that I do anything that is that interesting. If you want to tell people, that's on you but ask me again in twenty if I've made anybody sign an NDA. Right now the answer is still no but ask me again a few years.

 

Are you wary about certain texts you sent out?

 

One hundred percent. I'm like, “No tapes and cameras.” My text is very vanilla because you see all the time that there are investigations.” Anything you need to say that's spicy or whatever, you can see me and I'll see you eventually and we'll talk about it. We'll have a great time. We don't need to do it on the phone. No, I don't need the pictures. I'm not going to take the pictures. We're not going to do any of that just because you want to limit your exposure as much as you can. Also, some things are out of your control, but for the things that are, be smart about them. It’s a pretty off-record experience.

 

I want to get into the final segment of the show, where we respond to something taboo in the culture, something happening, or current events. When we discussed this interview, you brought up something that I thought was super important. It’s something that we need to address and that I think people are having conversations behind the scenes because it is so controversial but not talking about it in a public setting. It’s racism but racism as it exists within the Latino community. Let's break that down a little bit.

 

Racism And Representation 

 

It's a complicated one. I mentioned that my mother's family is from the Dominican Republic. My father's family is American Black. I know and feel when people meet me and realize that I'm Dominican, there's the calculation that happens in terms of, “What kind of Dominican are you? Are you one that's going to be concerned about race? Are you one that's going to treat me differently because I'm Black?”

 

Also, I feel sometimes that I have to navigate that space from Black people. “What kind of Dominican are you? Are you a racist Dominican or not?” I get that because we have complications within our community with colorism. We have issues like every community and I think that that's one layer. That's frustration in one direction but I think another interesting part of the dynamics between communities is the fact that in New York City, on the state level, we don't have any Latino elected officials.

 

All of our statewide electeds are either Black or White and the same is true on the city level. When you look at a community that is so full of Latino people to never see that representation reach those highest levels, it makes you question, “What's happening?” Those questions turn into frustrations and I think that what we've seen lately is the Latino community not feeling supported in its quest for leadership at the highest levels. Also, feeling like the Black and Brown coalition that we've built over the years hasn't given to Latinos in the way that it's given to the Black community.

 

There's something to be said about that because when you look around, the facts are what they are but I do worry that this conversation is so wrought with tension, and like every other conversation about race, it has the ability to go off the rail so quickly. It can turn into one where instead of trying to figure out how you solve the problem, you're in a situation where you're exasperating it and now you're causing a split. Also, I want to say that it's also fascinating to me that when we think about minority representation, we don't ever look at how many White people are in office.

 

It's always, “How many seats are there for people of color and why aren't some of them mine?” That is such a scarcity mindset that immediately pushes you to a space where it's me against you instead of, “How is this conversation about us on the larger picture?” It's a lot of tension. It's not easy but I do think it's something that we have to acknowledge that within our community, racism exists and we yield it against one another.

 

I’m Dominican and I speak Spanish, but there are many people for whatever reason who didn't know I was Dominican at all. I've been in spaces where people think I'm a light-skinned Black woman, which I am. We talk and you can hear the talk about Latinos and it's uncomfortable. Also, the same thing happens in the other space where people think I'm a Dominican woman and I am, and we'll be talking about the Black community in ways that make me uncomfortable.

 

I think in that moment, it's incumbent on people like me who exist in both spaces to be able to speak up and say, “That's not true.” It has led to some uncomfortable moments in my life but you got to do it. I genuinely believe that's our responsibility because not many people get the opportunity to be in both of those spaces and be able to represent the other community and help bridge those gaps.

 

That's interesting because you'll hear a lot of Afro-Latinos say that they're not accepted by the Latino community and they're not Black enough for the Black community. How can we solve this? What are the first steps? How do we get out of our own way?

 

That's a million-dollar question. I'd be very rich if I knew that answer. I do think that it's a question of culture and shared understanding in a way that there are lots of things about Black culture that are distinct from the Dominican culture, but there are a lot of things that are very similar too. I think it's realizing that irrespective of what language you speak, so much of your experience as a person in this country is rooted in how you present.

Whether someone is rooted in Black culture, but they look like a Black person, just because they're rooted in the Dominican culture, but look like a Black person, they're living this life in America as a Black person. That's how you look. Also, the same thing is true for White Latinos too. If you look like a White Dominican, you are going to experience life completely differently than I do here in the United States, by the way.

I think we'd all stand to benefit if we could reintroduce the nuances in this conversation because the concept of like, “You're not Black enough, you're not Latino enough are hard lines that don't work for something that is extremely nuanced. It’s because you could be darker skinned and have hair that is long and flowing and that's going to change your experience. Also, you could be light-skinned and have hair that is coily and that's going to change your experience.

 

Understanding how the layers and the nuances all interact and understanding that there's no cut and dry “This makes me Black enough. This makes me Latino enough. This makes you different. This makes you not,” I think is an important part of it, especially as someone who sits in the middle of both. I am equally planted in both. It's interesting because it makes me different from a lot of my family. Most of my family is only Dominican. I have little cousins who are half Black, but they weren't born until I was twenty. Understanding that there are people who have these experiences that are unique and that doesn't make them any less valid or any less important.

 

I think also what would help is, and it is an extension of the nuances, but there's a lack of education in the community on why these nuances exist and what is the root cause of them. It’s because a lot of us are carrying our ancestors' preconditioning and bringing it into this modern world. We are having an identity crisis. We're like, “We're not American enough. How do we hold onto our cultural roots, but then our culture is shifting all the time.”

 

Even how we are represented in terms of Latino, Latinx, or Hispanic. We are constantly in this in-between where our cultura is evolving, modernizing, and catching up with the times. We also have these traditional roots, which are a big part of our DNA and make us amazing. It gives us a competitive edge and advantage, but are also holds us back.

 

Yes, because many of them are rooted in colonialism and that's important to note that it's in our DNA to think, “This is good. This is bad, but understanding that’s a mentality that was forced on our communities and our communities have always been made up of everything and we should continue to try to get back to that.

 

I think this tension that exists between the Black community and the Latino community is also causing change to take longer to happen because we're pitted against each other. The clients that I have in corporate, and behind the scenes they'll share with me, especially during the George Floyd and the last couple of years, “Everybody's being promoted into these new roles and they're all Black. What's happening with the Latino agenda? Why are not Latinos being considered throughout this promotion craze when a lot of our experiences are shaped? Latinos were also enslaved. There are layers to that and there are differences. There are also similarities and because of this system that we are all trying to fit and succeed in at the same time, it's difficult to not view each other as if it's me or you.

 

When you were speaking, I wondered if that person noticed how many White people got promoted. It's like back to that point of like, “If we're making the case that promotions and that this is a meritocracy and that it's whoever does it best, should be the best and should get promoted, etc.” Sure but then that means looking at how everyone's doing, not just me and you. I think that is at the core of it and that's rooted in colonialism. Looking at each other, finding the differences, and making myself better than you but it's all vis-a-vis the White person who's doing their own thing.

 

I think that's an important thing to try to be conscious of and try to deconstruct but I also think, to your point, in terms of progress taking longer, that's true. At the core of the frustration that you're hearing politically is that we have seen the Black community's advancements supported throughout the years in the Black and Brown coalition, especially here in New York specifically. You had the Puerto Rican community that were the pioneers for Latinos here in New York, and who working together with the Black community were able to get to all of these advancements.

 

Also, the Puerto Rican community saw their gains politically as well but we've seen those gains eroded. I think it's looking to recreate and refortify that Black and Brown coalition that makes it so that neither one of us gets left behind. For whatever reason in these last few years, the formula is broken. It's not working the way that it used to. Needing to reconfigure that, but everybody needs to stop, take a look, and say, “Yeah. Something isn't right here. How do we rectify that?”

 

That is the million-dollar question. How do we rectify it at the same time as trying to adapt to this new world that we're all trying to figure out where we fit in?

We are trying to not get worked out of a job by a robot. At the same time trying to solve racism.

 

It’s like, “I don't know if I could worry about all of that social stuff when I might not have a job.”

 

It's a lot.

 

Yeah. It is. It’s super heavy. Assemblywoman, thank you so much for being on the show. Thank you for your work. Thank you for being dope as hell. Thank you for being very intentional and focused on your mission and vision. Also, being an example of what a politician operating in integrity looks like. I appreciate you for that. Keep killing it, sis.

 

Thank you for spotlighting our culture, our community, and the voices within it. We're a diaspora that is full of so many incredible people totally doing incredible things. It's worthwhile to stop, pause, acknowledge, and celebrate. Thank you for creating the space and the invitation.

 

Until next time, you all. Thanks for tuning in.